Breeder permits among ideas as Lubbock seeks solutions to dog problem

Lubbock's animal services director said he would recommend requiring permits for dog breeders, one of several ideas that could make their way to the City Council to curb a growing dog problem.

"If you open up the Sunday paper, you see pages of for-sale or free puppies," director Kevin Overstreet said. "That's where the problem starts."

Overstreet and other city officials met Tuesday with the city's Animal Shelter Advisory Board and the Lubbock Board of Health to discuss options for dealing with dangerous dogs in the city as well as plans for a new animal shelter.

There have been multiple dog attacks on animals and several against people in the past few months, and Overstreet described a situation of heightened awareness among the public - his office has received 11,293 calls since Jan. 1 and more than 22,000 since October from people reporting loose dogs.

The committees didn't come up with any surefire solutions. They'll meet again in April. But their discussion and input from several residents who spoke gave Overstreet enough to work with, saying the city needed to encourage responsible pet ownership. Those recommendations could be:

 Require those who breed dogs as a business to buy a pet litter permit from the city. Overstreet praised the animal service program in Albuquerque, N.M., which has such a program, and he said he and other city officials would visit that city soon. Overstreet didn't say how much such a permit would cost. Albuquerque's costs $150.

 Increase fines against owners whose dogs get loose. Current fines are up to $500.

 Revoke a $50 fee charged to out-of-city residents who drop off dogs at the animal shelter. Committee members said they believe that would result in a "county full of dog catchers" and reduce the number of strays in unincorporated areas.

But city officials said they didn't know if an already crowded animal shelter would have room to take those dogs, nor did Overstreet know what eliminating that fee would do to his department's budget.

 Require owners pay to have a microchip inserted into their dog as a way to identify the animal and its owners if the animal gets loose.

 And increase public service and education programs, which include reminding residents there is money available to help pay for neutering their pets.

"This is a daunting task," said Larry Phillips, the chairman of the Animal Shelter Advisory Board. "This is only the beginning, as we've said before."

The City Council on Thursday is expected to hold a public hearing on plans to build a new animal shelter in McAlister Park, west of Milwaukee Avenue. The city originally budgeted $3.5 million for the project, but it has increased to close to $6 million as officials said the city should build one larger than it already has.

Even at close to $6 million, the animal shelter would hold only about 50 more dogs than it does now, said Scott Snider, the city's assistant city manager for community services.